CHENNAI: Super Chennai honoured historian, author and heritage curator V Sriram as its ‘Icon of the Month’ as part of the 387th Madras Day celebrations, recognising his decades-long efforts to document and popularise the history and heritage of the city.
The award was presented by Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner GS Sameeran at a Super Chennai Arattai gathering.
Speaking at the event, Sriram opined that Chennai should not be viewed as a single, uniform city, as each neighbourhood has its own history and stories. “Heritage documentation should move beyond prominent buildings and personalities to cover communities and everyday experiences that often remained undocumented,” he stated. “Histories of neighbourhoods like Shenoy Nagar, KK Nagar, Anna Nagar, Aminjikarai, Tambaram and Sholinganallur need to be recorded before rapid urbanisation erases their physical and social traces.”
Sriram also stressed the need to document the lives of ordinary Chennai residents, including railway workers, linesmen and traffic constables, whose work had contributed to the city’s social history
Sriram also stressed the need to document the lives of ordinary Chennai residents, including railway workers, linesmen and traffic constables, whose work had contributed to the city’s social history but remained largely confined to public memory. “History of our city must be made accessible in regional languages,” he added, and highlighted his work on ‘Madras Bhashai’ and efforts to present the city’s history in Tamil through digital platforms. “Heritage walks,” he said, “should serve as a starting point for deeper research rather than being treated merely as an end product.”
Sameeran compared Chennai’s history to the roots of a large tree, saying the visible city represented only one layer of its deeper stories, people and memories. He credited Sriram with bringing lesser-known aspects of the city’s history into public consciousness.
Heritage walks should serve as a starting point for deeper research rather than being treated merely as an end product- V Sriram, historian, author and heritage curator
Ranjeeth Rathod, MD, Super Chennai, said that Madras Day was not merely a celebration of the city but also of the people who had shaped its identity. “Sriram’s books, heritage walks and storytelling have helped successive generations engage with the city’s history meaningfully,” he said.
As part of the celebrations, Super Chennai also launched ‘Let’s Talk Chennai’, a citizen-led platform inviting people to share stories, memories and photographs connected to the city. The initiative seeks to document the city’s neighbourhoods, people, communities, culture, landmarks and everyday experiences.